FatScribe Slight No. 3

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FatScribe.com is about getting one's chops in order; putting something on the page and some skin in the game. Writers write, even if unpaid. If you have something to say, and don't, intellectual obesity sets in. "Fat is a state of mind." --- All rights reserved. Content may not be published, rewritten, or redistributed without written permission.

16 May 2016

In marketing we talk about "second screen" quite a bit, where viewers of today's new golden age of television shows will have their iPad or phablet also on, flipping to related websites or running Bing searches for additional insight (I'm off Google for the time being ... for the time Bing?!). I am in fact sitting here right now with three screens opened on my bed: Apple's iPad which is still on from last night's Netflix 30Rock escorting yours truly off to the land of nod; Microsoft Surface that I'm typing on for this article, er, blog entry; and my LG Vista which I'm texting on trying to close some lead-gen business with a law firm in Florida, and my computer way over yonder on my stand-up desk (he really is a stand-up sort of fellow and workhorse, my stand-up desk -- yes, my desk is male, until the Bruce Jenner in him comes to light, at which time we'll part ways with polite hugs and pat-pat back rubs for Caitlyn and Jg. As an fyi, I see Caitlyn almost each week here at our local coffee joint where ole Jenner rolls up in the Porsche GT3). So, that's a total of 4 screens going now, which is especially egregious when one considers we're in California where power, she ain't cheap.

Playing on my Spotify is Bill Evans "But Beautiful," and I'm just letting it repeat itself, burrowing its melodic self into my medula oblongata ... or maybe that's the hippocampus? Anyway, I've been sitting on a piece (this one you're currently suffering through) since April of 2015. Recent events, especially President (BHO No. 44) Obama's transgen fiat bathroom demands to all the states and also last year's SCOTUS ruling on same-sex marriage, have put a shiv in my back to finally hit "publish" on this languishing piece. So, here goes.

Many of you good folks may know, especially you, Dear Reader, of my bouts of prolixity and wont of sesquipedalianism. This piece will prove and offer scant difference.

If one goes back a mere decade or two, it was (almost) inconceivable that our coeval Freedoms of Speech and Religion, subsumed under the 1st Amendment, would have been characterized as teetering on the precipice of a sacrificial slide onto the alter of political correctness. That phrase "PC" seems quaint, now, as it fails to capture the mean-spiritedness and small-mindedness of the phrase that now occupies (an appropriate phrase, "occupies") the zeitgeist of our age, especially those on the Left. They perseverate on some small battle that maybe impacts .03% of the US population, e.g., bathrooms for all "genders," until the issue is ground-down and they finally chew the cud on the issue, grinding every last ounce, drop and meaning from its corpus-once-bolus. Then these no-job-having-know-it-all's, aka organizers, will then flashmob over to the next Alinsky battle, e.g., some name of a sports team (meh), or an historical flag flown in a southern clime (well worth the discussion), orhairstyle worn by a person of non-color who's accused of appropriating a put-upon culture of color for their own enjoyment, which is a micro-aggression of the first-order.(If you haven't seen this as an issue, click the link.)

Without the Freedom of Speech there is no plenary power -- gleaned in this once robust right -- enabling the complete ability to practice one's religion faithfully. Without the Freedom of Speech how can believers, the faithful, distinguish their view of truth from those held by others in our hyper-pluralistic civil society? To have the ability to uniquely perambulate philosophically on their journey of discovery, to cogitate and to masticate on and digest all things presented to them, to each of us, things of import, different flavors of religion, thought, cultures (pop and otherwise), textures and stratum of worldviews. Our still-though-less-great nation affords so many of my GenX gene pool an opportunity to the hyper PC things around. When I was in high school, I visited a friend's church and found, after a three month investigatory journey, that I quite liked this particular brand of faith. This has been a 30-year journey that seems each year to be more and more under the gun of anti-theist rhetoric (thanks Dawkins / Hitchens antipathy, and a mainstream media ersatz laicite) and a condescending culture coastal elite comfortably mocking Judeo-Christian traditionalists.

Because our world here in the US is indeed hyper-pluralistic and hyper-sensitive -- for some the very definition of political correctness -- the exception is swallowing the rule. Because the Left places the rights of the minority in a place of primacy over American dominant culture points of view for the simple and paternalistic reason is that they (the liberal Left) are afraid to allow the minority positions to have their positions, faiths, opinions or lifestyles challenged by what is now or has been historically traditional culture in the United States or the West in general or even in State cultures at a more granular level.

This column is not about me and my faith and any proselytization or pronouncement against another's faith or lifestyle or culture or sexual identity. It's about Free Speech for all of us. I'm merely pointing out recent policy exemplars on the Left of me in terms of contradistinction. Your freedom and my freedom to speak our minds, fully and as emotionally and reverently and jealously as we should for things of import. But, it's also about common sense and reasonableness and about adults calling out the childish, churlish and destructive behaviors of those amongst who don't want reasonable debate, discussion and comity and urbane discourse.

As James Madison wrote in his "Memorial and Remonstrance" published in 1784, 5 years after the Constitution codified:

The religion then, of every man, must be left to the conviction and conscience of every man; and it is the right of every man to exercise it as these may dictate.

James Madison, as a quick reminder, was the primary drafter of our US Constitution, and was the primary drafter of the 1st Amendment in our Bill of Rights as well. He knew a thing or two about good citizenry, and religious freedom, and the spheres of jurisdiction that protect religious practitioners from zealous overreach both by the government, as well as those citizens (viz., anti-theists) offended by the mere existence of religion and religious life in the Colonies, and these United States some 225 years later. The artist Basquiat was also familiar with citizenship freedoms that allow for expression of oneself by simply moving-on, and "put it all in one bag" and not engage. Every man, as Madison wrote, has the right exercise religion as they see fit.

Basquiat Notebook 1980-81 (Citizen in Parking Lot)

It's not just religion, it's freedom to say whatever the hell you want, in whatever fashion you want, to whomever you want (or to no one in particular)! All caps alert: BUT, it does not mean you and I have the right to be heard. You and I DO NOT have the right to barge into a Bernie Sanders meeting and start chanting "Hill-a-ry! Hill-a-ry! Hill-a-ry! She's the one for 2016!" while ole silver haired Bernard is waxing eloquent about taking 90% of Susan Sarandon's income to give to the $15/hr minimum wage Burger King workers. In the law, we look at "time, place and manner of restriction." They do not cover private events, on private property, where the government has no duty to allow you the Hillary voter to take over a Bernie supporter event.

Also enshrined in this Amendment of ours is the right to peaceably assemble. In other words, to gather together with others who think as we do, whether religiously or politically or "lifestylie"; or in sports or art or volunteerism. But, if you disagree with me and any of my alleged cohorts, you have the right NOT to assemble with us. Just as we have the right to assemble without those who disagree with us, whether that be at your private club or my church or your non-profit that believes animals have the same rights as people or me and my group that likes to BBQ those animals on Saturday after church, Shul, or the bridge club bacchanalia. This is our collective GREAT right to gather and to discuss.

As an example of such gathering, I put this little test to you, Dear Reader, that juxtaposes two disparate groups and their worldview and the practical consequences of such beliefs. 1. is the TEA Party (taxed enough already) and 2. Black Lives Matter.

The first group is a group of mostly middle-and-soon-to-be-aged Boomer/GenX types who became disgusted with the profound waste the federal government exhibits as it spends its way toward oblivion on things which are never going to be realized in any form of value for our country. But it's really about the legacy of debt and wasteful spending that these TEA Party types are concerned about all of our children who will inherit -- regardless of their race, gender, politics and college education. They, our grand babies, are going to carry the poor decisions of those in government for the next century.

(Note, for the record, and btdubs, I am not a TEA party person; never have been and will probably not be in the future. It's what Groucho Marx said: I wouldn't want to join any group or club that would have me as a member!)

After each and every TEA party type gathering that I am aware of, America the country is praised, flags are waived, flown, worn, and revered. Trash is picked-up, and the meetings while sometimes loud and boisterous, and filled with shouts and chants and bellyaching, are ended and completed with individuals making sure the place where these gatherings occurred were better than when they got there. Run a Bing.com search on this point if you don't believe, you incredulous beautiful bastard, you!

Now ... compare these TEA party rallies and protests with those of the second group mentioned above, i.e., BLM or Occupy (wherever) type protests. These are riots. People are injured. American flags are burned. Buildings are burned, from Baltimore to Ferguson. No one pulls permits. The places, parks and particular cities are literally trashed. It's not a matter of discourse, debate and discussion. It's chaos. It's disruption. It's about revenge. Cops are targeted and shot at. So are firefighters. I should clarify and acknowledge the some permits are pulled, but most are not. Our high schools and colleges are the brainwashing breeding grounds where our sons, daughters and their student friends to become the next disaffected, race-baiting, hair-triggered radical organizers of tomorrow.

As one who's lived in Inglewood and SoCentral, Los Angeles for 10 years, I know a thing or two about economically strained neighborhoods, and the racial make-up of many different groups therein, and the types of businesses and entrepreneurs that thrive in these communities south of the 10 Fwy. And I've seen the wonderful impact churches and schools and the Boy Scouts and universities and other mediating institutions that help to transition, mentor and model what successful behaviors young citizens will need to become the types of adults who can help turn around our country. We do not need negative modeling by those throwing Molotov cocktails, but we need the men and women of color, who stand on the front and are the thin blue lines facing BLM and Occupy mobs weekly. We do not need thug life, that latches on to slights, past systemic wrongs and current tough circumstances the kind of folk like Booker T Washington described as acting like "crabs in a bucket" not wishing any to succeed, but rather we need more exemplars of forgiveness, more moments of grace given, and extra helpings of hopefulness that looks for the best regardless and sees adversity as the wet stone to sharpen a burgeoning life of excellence and accomplishment, sated with future successes soon to be realized.

So, do yourself a favor, even if you despise my worldview, have a listen to Mark Steyn above, and see if what he's saying isn't in fact so. That we're losing our freedoms slowly but surely across the West. Believe, me, he's well worth the time to listen in for a bit.

3 comments:

Mark has had enough of privileged 'speak' and so have I ==that he mentioned Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm brought a smile =as I often bring them up myself..when it comes of the tyrannous hand of gvt...and>>>I think we should start our own 'group' ==Carol-CS

Jg - I enjoyed looking up the first couple of words and after that I scanned a bit. I read what you had to say about the TEA party and the BLM/Occupy movements. I've never been a great news reader (all bad - really important stuff eventually filters through and I've saved a lot of time and stress), so I can never say I'm well informed. I can tell I'm getting really old (just turned 60) because I can finally see why political issues matter. My problem is that the one TEA party person I ever knew was the most self-centered, pompous ass; he was married to a dear friend and when she died I was relieved not to have to deal with him any more. People who complain about their taxes generally strike me as saying 'I've got mine and I want to keep more; stuff the rest of them, they can take care of themselves.' A shocking over generalization I know.

Living in Britain I am far removed (duh) from the goings on of the Occupy and BLM groups. I hear about them through social media, which I'm aware only helps us confirm our own views. I believe in what I perceive as the cause of each campaign and I'm sorry to read that they don't behave themselves when they meet. Riots in the street must be very distressing to live with.

One thing that crossed my mind was that the women's suffrage movement never changed a thing until they started breaking windows. It may just be that when you're fighting a firmly entrenched establishment, it can't be neat and tidy and easily ignored.

I don't normally put my head above the parapet, you know. I hate debate, being very ill equipped to hold up my side and enjoying peace and quiet as a rule.

FatScribe Pull No. 1

"Nature and tyrants abhor a vacuum. And, when this wide-body kleptocracy of Mubarak exits the Sinai Peninsula, I predict we will have radicals entering the vacated public square ready to bring new direction and dictates to the masses that don't have the rights of man on their agendas. I'm afraid that radicalism will replace corruption, and then the West will have both to contend with." -- FatScribe

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FatScribe Slight No. 6

Brankton had visions of a rotund Orson Welles with white chef hat in the back somewhere saying that he'd "flip no flapjack before it's time." He also had a vision of smacking the sass off that fat man's face. -- FatScribe